Latches with manually operated pawls are used on all types of closures such as doors, including vehicle compartment doors and doors to storage compartments. Typically, such latches have a rotatable latch which engages a striker bar to hold a panel or door closed. The latch is actuated either directly by a handle, or by a pawl which is rotated by connection to a handle. Some latches are actuated by a pivotally mounted paddle-type handle which is lifted out of the plane of the panel or door in which it is mounted to pivot about the hinge mount to actuate the pawl and/or latch with a sliding motion generally in the plane of the latch mount. Because the paddle induces a lateral force on the latch/pawl mechanism, the operation of many designs is not smooth.
In purely mechanical latch systems, because the latch is located on the interior side of the door or panel, and the handle on the exterior side, there must necessarily be an opening in the panel or door in which the latch is mounted. This opening presents the problem of moisture entering both the latch assembly and the compartment. In latches which employ rotatable handles to actuate the latch or pawl, the problem is fairly well managed by use of annular gaskets and seals. However, latches which have a sliding-type mechanism such as the paddle handled type have not heretofore been provided with adequate weather and moisture resistant structure.
The present invention overcomes these and other disadvantages of the prior art.